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Kumasi, Nov 06, GNA - President Nana Addo-Dankwa Akufo-Addo has pledged the government’s unswerving determination to maintain fiscal discipline to sustain the economy on the path of growth. This comes as its prudent economic policies over the past 10 months are paying off.

Inflation is now down from 17 per cent to 12.12 per cent. The economy is also growing at 7.6 per cent, with the deficit now standing at 6.3 per cent. President Akufo-Addo said these had been achieved through efficient management of the economy and well-thought out policies. He indicated that there was now significant improvement over the previous year’s macro-economic statistics, and gave the assurance that they were focused on transforming the economy - to boost investor confidence, create jobs and wealth for the people. He was addressing a meeting of the National House of Chiefs (NHC) in Kumasi. President Akufo-Addo said corruption was being tackled with the seriousness it deserved to allow for effective utilization of state resources. “Government is counting on all well-meaning Ghanaians, including our traditional authorities to join in the campaign to stem corrupt practices, which have been the bane of the nation’s economy”, he added. Corruption, he said, tended to stifle development initiatives and growth of any society and should be fought on all fronts. The President spoke of the priority, it was focusing on agriculture and industrialization and said the two sectors remained critical to the job creation agenda of the government. He hinted that the next budget to be read by the Finance Minister on November 15, would highlight measures to grow the sectors. President Nana Akufo-Addo urged the chiefs to forge strong partnership with the government to realize the national development goals. “We are conscious of the invaluable role and contribution of traditional rulers in our development agenda, and as such my government intends to make them an integral part of our activities to promote the interest of the people.” He added that issues concerning illegal small-scale mining, protection of the nation’s cultural heritage and environment, enforcement of the law and ensuring discipline in aspects of human endeavor required the collaboration of chiefs. “As chiefs you have the responsibility to help preserve our lands, as well as all other resources the good Lord has blessed us with.” Togbe Afede XIV, President of the House, applauded the government for its pro-poor policies, and expressed the hope that it would continue to work hard to build a more robust and resilient economy. The meeting had been designed to provide the platform for the President to explain government development policies and programmes to the chiefs.